The U.S. dollar continued its slow weekly decline overnight.
Overview
The greenback is currently at a four-week low and is set for a second straight week of weekly declines. The traditional safe-haven currency is under pressure as risk sentiment continues to soar.

Data released overnight showed that China, the world’s second-largest economy, grew by 18.3% in the first quarter. Chinese retail sales also rose 34% in March, boosting global risk sentiment. Indeed, global stocks are currently are a record high. American shares are also higher as earnings season continues.

Data in the States this morning include U.S. housing starts which showed an impressive rise of 19.4%. Later, the University of Michigan sentiment will be released at 10 a.m. Fed speakers are sparse with only Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan speaking twice today.

What to Watch Today…

No major events scheduled for today
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EUR ⇑
The Euro is a bit stronger against the U.S. dollar again this morning. The storyline has remained consistent all week – the common currency has taken advantage of a weakening dollar on higher risk sentiment and as the vaccine outlook brightens in the European Union. However, we continue to note that the Euro has been unable to break above an important technical and psychological level this week, possibly a sign that Euro’s rally could be short-lived.

Euro-area finance ministers are meeting today regarding the EU’s recovery fund. Headlines have been sparse so far

CAD ⇑
The Canadian dollar rose to a weekly high against the U.S. dollar this morning. There was no major news released in Canada today so the move can be attributed to widespread U.S. dollar weakness. We were expecting to see Canadian housing start but Canada Mortgage & Housing Corp released a press release early this morning saying the data will be released on Monday instead.

The Baker Hughes rig count will be released at 1 p.m., which could affect the price of oil and then USD/CAD.